Plants & filtration

Hello everyone!

So, I finally got tired of my old tank setup from back when I was inexperienced and wanted something a little newer, and exciting, and more aesthetically pleasing than just an air pump and some plain ol decorations from the LFS. I figured I was experienced and comfortable enough to try doing a planted tank (mostly followed the walstad method).

But since I already had a tank with fish in it, I had an old 6.6G tank that I had tried this with at first, with a few minor setbacks, and went and rescued a giant betta (very well tempered, lives with 2 ADFs and and 4 apple snails without incident). this tank has been successfull so far other than the relentless browning of the water, I don't think I quite put enough flourite down over the soil. - this tank was filled with water from my existing tank, and filter media used from the existing tank when I set it up.

Now I did my 29G like this as well, last night, I have it double filtered with an aquaclear 50 & 30 (its a deep tank, the water flow isn't too much for them), I have it moderately planted for the time being, till the plants grow. I used Flourite Dark and MG organic garden soil (thicker flourite this time, doesn't look like too much brown is getting in to the water, if at all).

Since the 29G tank already had inhabitants, and I had existing filter media, etc. when I set it up, i'm having some issues taking out the filter media, a little voice in the back of my head is telling me not to

- I like the filters ability to remove particulates from the water, but I know the plants need the ammonia.
should I remove the filter media slowly and monitor ammonia readings till they balance out with the plant life? or should I just remove it all and go right down to just 'water flow'.

can I still keep the sponges in, even if I cut them down to a smaller thickness? or should I switch to a floss?

p.s: all filters on the 29G are currently fully stocked, sponges, ceramics, and carbon. The 6.6G has sponge & ceramics in it, filter was seeded with ceramics from the 29G.

any input is greatly appreciated.
thanks!
-Nathan

 

I have all planted tanks and use every thing in my filters. sponge, bio rings, and carbon. you would deff want sponge and rings

dont worry about your plants getting ammonia they will. when the fish poop it will fall down where the plants can use it from there roots.

 

As long as you have healthy, relatively quick plant growth you should be able to just take the filters off. You could slowly remove filter media while keeping an eye on your water parameters if you're concerned- there would be nothing wrong with that. Filtration in Walstad tanks is generally discouraged and really not needed as long as they're set up correctly and healthy, but since your plants really haven't taken off yet and your tank is fully stocked there would be nothing wrong with slowly removing media. Personally I take the filters right off my tanks without a problem but my first tank took a while to get going. Personally I wouldn't run any filtration in my tanks because they're doing great without it... they keep the water parameters perfect and I love the low maintenance so much.

 

sponge filters a great, maybe those would be a good choice....

iv never not had a filter but have heard of people doing it maybe I'm just to chicken. lol

 

its just disconcerting if you know what I mean, the tanks relying on the filters for a little over a year now, and has been doing great for the most part, my better judgement tells me to leave them in, filtration = life right? heh.

alot of the plants have grown a lot overnight, and some that didnt look 100% healthy showed improvement overnight, all the fish appear happy/illness free, active, etc. (especially when you go from decorations to a nice planted setup)

I think I like the idea of removing the filter media slowly and letting everything else catch up.

what about in the end, I still do like the idea of having a sponge or maybe some floss in the filter to get rid of particulates that get sloshed up in to the water.

floss I could just throw out every so often, or a sponge I could reduce the thickness(to reduce the biological capacity) and just use it as a particulate filter, or am I better off just leaving them empty eventually?

 

Yep, slowly removing the media is a great idea. It won't do any harm. Sounds like your plants are already doing a great job!

After you remove the majority of the media, I think you're better off just taking the filter off. That way the particulate will be able to settle on the bottom and act as fertilizer and you wouldn't be taking away from the plants. There really aren't rules though; you can leave a HOB filter on with a little bit of floss or sponge if you really want to. It won't cause any harm, it's just not completely needed and doesn't follow the exact way you're supposed to set up a Walstad tank. I have tanks that have never once had a filter on them and they have crystal clear water because everything settles on the bottom and makes its way down to the dirt. So I don't think you have to worry about the clarity of your water, but I also don't think it's going to do any harm if you leave it on. Just less maintenance and such if you have no filter at all which is nice.

Also I agree sponge filters are great. A sponge filter would be a good choice to give you a bit of filtration and just the right amount of aeration for your tank.

 

So, I followed your advice and I removed the filter media, probably a little faster than I originally planned.
First night: replaced both carbon packs with fresh ones. next morning no ammonia readings.
2nd night: removed the bio-max from the AC30 filter - next morning no ammonia readings, nitrates @ 5ppm
3rd night: removed bio-max from AC50, and filter sponge from AC30, augmented lighting more suited to plants(2x truelumen LED light strips, 12k bright white lights, just stuck to my current lighting system via 3-way splitter) this morning no ammonia, nitrites, 5ppm nitrate.

I threw in a few more fish to fully stock the tank, gonna let it sit for a week or so then remove the last sponge from the AC50, and remove the carbon packs (leaving the carbon in for now to assist with anything that might be leeching out from the fresh soil)

thanks for your input everyone!
I didnt think this would go so smoothly.